MORNINGSTAR: GROWING UP WITH BOOKS by Ann Hood & GIVEAWAY

** GIVEAWAY CLOSED **

Best-selling author, Ann Hood wrote one of my favorite novels last year, THE BOOK THAT MATTERS MOST (WWNorton). We were delighted to meet her in New York City in May at BookExpo and get a signed copy of her new memoir, MORNINGSTAR: GROWING UP WITH BOOKS (WWNorton) that we’re giving away to one lucky Thoughts on This ‘n That blog follower. It speaks to the intimate relationship Ann has with reading and books.

Ann grew up in Rhode Island inside a home that didn’t share her love of literature. Nonetheless, she devoured books such as THE BELL JAR, MARJORIE MORNINGSTAR, THE HARRAD EXPERIMENT and many others. She was able to learn about “taboo” subjects not discussed in her home, such as sexuality and madness. One of Ann’s fondest memories is when the Warwick Mall opened, including a bookstore and she could walk to it.

MORNINGSTAR: GROWING UP WITH BOOKS is broken up into ten chapters called lessons, partnered with a novel she uses to teach a particular lesson. Ann’s prose are so conversational and comfortable, I felt as if I was in a book club of two – me and her. Ann’s choice of authors and novels include Erich Segal’s, LOVE STORY which she employs to share how books touch her soul. She reveals how reading, “love means never having to say you’re sorry,” as one of the most profound lines she’d read up until that time.

She explores how books touch her heart, enlighten the world around her and the many valuable lessons she has learned. Ann eloquently writes what many of us who love books feel. For those of us who love the written word, MORNINGSTAR: GROWING UP WITH BOOKS is a delightful book you’ll not only want to read, but share with fellow “bibliophiles.”

FYI. Costco has chosen Ann’s novel, The Book That Matters Most for their August book of the month. Congratulations.

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Ann Hood is the author of the best-selling novels, THE BOOK THAT MATTERS MOST, THE KNITTING CIRCLE, THE RED THREAD, THE OBITUARY WRITER, AN ITALIAN WIFE and SOMEWHERE OFF THE COAST OF MAINE. She recently remarried and lives in Providence, Rhode Island with her husband.

We’re lucky to have one signed copy of MORNINGSTAR: GROWING UP WITH BOOKS to giveaway. Just tell us what you love about reading. We’ll announce a winner next week.

What I love about reading is that it let’s me escape my everyday life and takes me to places I would of never been and I get to experience people that I would of never had a chance to meet. It’s like I get to live more than one life.

I don’t know when my love of reading began. I think it started when I was in elementary school and read the Boxcar Children and Little House series. I remember when I was 13 and during summer break, I started writing down all the books I’ve read. I had a dictionary nearby for difficult words. Reading was an escapism for me. Today, it’s for entertainment, leisure, learning, and a little escapism.